Infected
by The Unknown Smile
Summary: "The Rat's Revenge". A new virus. A new scare. After getting word of said virus, Happy Tree Town is turned upside down in a fit of fear. Now, everyone is for themselves. Only Sniffles is the one keeping a level head. And he only has two other tree friends he can count on in this. But the question is: can he really cure Happy Tree Town, before he's infected himself?
1. Prologue

**Infected**

**~Prologue~**

The cool breeze swept over Happy Tree Town, rustling the trees' leaves and even pulling some off. Said fallen leaves followed the wind's current as long as they were allowed, before gently falling to the ground. The leaves laid there, sometimes rolling this way or that when another soft breeze passed by. The stars in this night sky seemed to shine so brightly, as the moon's glower was cast upon the small town. Sniffles took off his glasses and opened his window. Tonight, he was going to see a famous tree friend. He smiled as he left a game of chess set up on his window sill. After taking one last look outside, he crawled into bed, pulling the covers up to his chin as he felt the cool night's breeze enter his open window.

An hour must have passed before he heard a tree friend outside in his tree. He smiled as they drew closer to his window.

"A game of chess," spoke the soft voice of his guest. "How wonderful! This shall be a great treat!"

The soul admired the game pieces, before finally choosing a piece and moving it. At the sound of the piece being set down, Sniffles shot up, looking at his guest with a smile.

"Hello, Milo," Sniffles spoke, sitting cross legged at the edge of his bed. The feline, Milo as he was called, just stayed in the tree, both admiring each other. Sniffles was surprised at the male's appearance. A pure white feline, wearing a white hoodie with his hood drawn up, as a black Japanese symbol was written on the chest. His eyes were pure black, as his heart-shaped nose was light gray in color. Though, he seemed to lack a mouth. But, surely he could talk! He heard him!

"Hello, Sniffles. Beautiful night, isn't it?" replied the feline. Seeing Milo talk made the anteater's skin crawl. His mouth was formed by his skin peeling away, though it didn't seem to hurt him. Sniffles figured it was just because he was used to it by now. "I see you have a game of chess set up. Mind if I ask if you truly want to play? Or are you like the others; wanting to see if I really do exist?"

"I'm actually in need of questions, Milo," he confessed, seeing the tree friend's expression turn to slight shock. "You see, there's a new virus going around. I was wondering if you knew anything about it?"

"Virus, hm?" Milo thought for a moment, taking a glance behind him to admire the woods. He nodded, turning to face Sniffles once more. "Yes. I know of it. Nasty thing, it is. I've heard it's called 'The Rat's Revenge'. Much worse than the plague."

"Do you know what will become of us?" He shook his head, shrugging his shoulders.

"That I can't say, my friend," He started to climb down the tree, and once he reached the bottom, he looked back up at Sniffles, who was leaning out the window to watch him. "Find the otter, Momo, in the morning. She lives by the old well by the town's center. Do you know of her?"

"I've heard stories, but I'm not sure what she looks like."

"She's a light blue otter with a black underbelly. She likes wearing this pink and purple panda hoodie and lighter matching leggings. Her hut is easy to spot, so it shouldn't be much of a problem. Good luck, Sniffles!"

"Goodnight, Milo! And thank you!" The feline waved and ran off, vanishing into a small cloud of white smoke. Sniffles smiled, putting away the game of chess and crawling back into bed. Tomorrow, he would pay Momo a visit. He had heard she was fortune teller. Perhaps she could tell him what was to the become of this new virus?


	2. Chapter 1

**Infected**

**~Chapter 1~**

The sun slowly rose over the mountains, the ray's from the bright star casting themselves on the small town, entering the buildings and houses. Sniffles slowly walked down the cool streets of Happy Tree Town, smiling slightly when he saw the well. It wasn't too far from the town's center. Maybe half a mile? He looked further down the road, seeing a small hut made of willow leaves. His smile grew as he made his way towards little house, wondering if she could really tell him of this new virus.

Once right outside the house, Sniffles noticed that Momo had large, blue tarot cards that made a path towards her door. He thought it was cute. And when he knocked on the door, he was surprised to see a young tree friend answer it. A light blue otter with a black underbelly, wearing the pink and purple panda hoodie and matching leggings.

"Hello," he spoke, smiling down at her. "Would you happen to be Momo?"

"Yes. Please, come inside," The otter turned her heels, walking back into her home and sitting behind a desk, swinging her legs on the chair that lifted her high above the ground for her height. He slowly entered, closing the door behind himself. The inside was very small, as the walls were painted a light gray. "So, you're Sniffles, I suppose?"

"Yes, I am!" He smiled over at the child, walking until he was in front of the desk. She nodded, fiddling around with some cards in her lap.

"You're here to know about The Rat's Revenge, right?" The anteater nodded, making her smile. "There's not too much to it, Mr. Sniffles. This disease is worse than the old plague. In about two months, _everyone_ in this town will be infected. And by that time, I'm sure everything will be dead. There's really no hope."

"Can't I make a cure? I'm sure I can!"

"You can try. You're a smart anteater. But, you'll have to get to it. The virus is almost here... and I think someone is already infected."

"Do you know who?"

"That, I cannot say. Just be careful."

"Okay. Thank you, Momo. You stay healthy now!"

"If you cannot make a cure before that virus gets here, then I'll move away before I get sick. Don't worry about me."

After saying their goodbyes, Sniffles exited the home, surprised to see that Petunia was right outside.

"Is it really true?" she asked, a worried look on her face. Sniffles tilted his head. "Is it true that there's a new virus going around?"

"Well... yes," he replied, though added quickly, "But, you're a clean girl! I'm sure it won't come anywhere near you!"

"I hope you're right. Be careful, Sniffles," The two smiled at each other, before Petunia went inside Momo's home and Sniffles went to his own house. The words of the otter repeated in his head though. _'Someone is already infected.' 'In about two months, everyone will be infected. And by then, everything will be dead.'_ He felt a chill crawl up his spine, making him shiver. He looked around Happy Tree Town, admiring all of his friends. Cub was happily playing with his father, as Flaky was picking tulips and daisies. Giggles was feeding the birds, and Nutty was close by, happily eating a lollypop. He smiled as he watched them do as they pleased. Even Flippy was taking a nap under a shady tree. Cuddles was trying out new tricks on his board, and Russel was fishing in the nearby pond. Sniffles couldn't believe that their town would ever be turned into an infected area.

"Yo, Sniffles!" Said anteater looked at the tree friend who called his name. He smiled at the two wolves approaching him.

"Hello Ghost, Bandit. How are you two?" he greeted as they stopped in front of him.

"Eh. Lifty and Shifty robbed us blind, so we're out here trying to find them to uh... talk about what they did," Bandit replied. Sniffles chuckled a bit, knowing what he meant by "talk". Bandit and Ghost were close brothers, though they didn't always agree. Ghost was older by a year, and had white fur with blue markings. Bandit had black fur with red markings, though he was a bit taller. Both had stunning golden eyes.

"Well, I wish you luck in finding them," Sniffles spoke, watching as they both nodded. "Hey, you two take care of yourselves, okay?"

"You too, Sniffles," Ghost smiled at the anteater, before turning his attention towards the woods. "You hear about the new virus? Scary, huh?"

"Yeah. I'm going to see if I can make a cure before it gets here," The brothers' eyes lit up upon hearing this.

"Please, do!" begged Bandit, smiling at the boy. "You would be a lifesaver if you did!"

"I'll do my best to do so, you two," They smiled, before saying goodbye and walking their own way. Sniffles frowned a bit. Now three people were depending on him to make this cure so no one would get deathly ill. He could do this though, right? He could make the cure and save everyone else! Yeah! It was all going to be okay! 

"Ah, Sniffles! Back from Momo's I see!" Said tree friend looked around, smiling when he saw Milo walking right behind him. "How'd it go, friend?"

"She told me that everyone would be infected within two months, and that everything would be dead," he replied. The feline shook his friend, before his skin peeled away to allow him to speak more. This always made him uncomfortable to see.

"Well, you better to work on that cure, Sniffles!" he chuckled, patting his back. "I would hate to watch everyone you love die right before your eyes!"

"Please, don't say that, Milo." The two walked the rest of the way to Sniffles' house, talking about the virus. Milo offered to help, and Sniffles happily accepted. Why wouldn't he want help? It would hurry along the process of this cure, and he wouldn't have to get himself sick by going out into the woods. Milo was a spirit after all, so he wouldn't get infected, right? Yeah. Of course not!

"Well, I wish you luck in this, Sniffles," Milo spoke, both stopping in front of his door. "I'll go get a sample of the virus. I'll be back around ten tonight. Make sure you're up!"

"I will. Thank you once again, Milo. I really appreciate all of this," he said, smiling at his friend who nodded. The feline patted his shoulder, and just like that, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Sniffles took a deep breath. This was it. He was going to start the research once Milo returned with the sample. Two months seemed like a long time, but Sniffles knew it would be here soon. And by the time it arrived, he had to have this done. Panic started to set in, along with doubt. What if he couldn't make it in time? What if the cure didn't work? What if Milo left him to do this all alone? ...What if Momo was wrong and the virus came sooner than she thought?


	3. Chapter 2

**Infected**

**~Chapter 2~**

Sniffles jumped as Milo burst through the door, a bucket half filled with a violet substance in his paws.

"I'm back, Sniffles!" he cried happily, showing the anteater his prize. Sniffles sighed, shaking his head slightly.

"Milo, please refrain from breaking my door down," he spoke calmly, watching as the feline walked over towards the stairs.

"I'll fix it later, I promise!" he chuckled, lifting his legs up off the ground and floated down the stairs. "Besides, we got bigger problems to worry about! You gotta make this cure, and I'm pretty sure Momo wasn't too correct on when that virus would arrive."

"What do you mean?" he asked, quickly following his friend downstairs.

"I mean, when I went into the woods, I found that virus about seven miles away!" he replied, gently setting the bucket down on the table. "If I'm correct, that thing's traveling faster and faster! You better hurry!"

"I'm trying! Do you think you'll be able to help me inject the different things into this?" Sniffles gave a small smile when Milo looked at him confused. "I mean, you are a spirit, after all. This virus shouldn't affect you in any way!"

"Yeah. Whatever helps," he sighed, looking back at the half full bucket. Sniffles smiled, thanking him at least fifteen times before they got to work. As Sniffles quickly threw together different type of herbs and chemicals, Milo was inspecting the virus and telling the anteater what he found. And after retrieving water, plants, and some meat, Milo started to see what would happen if they were to mix. The water made the purple virus grow a bit more, much to Sniffles' dismay. The plant was slowly eaten away, and the meat... well, the virus quickly set to work on it, making the small flesh in front of it decay right before his black eyes. Milo had never been so happy to be a spirit before.

Time seemed to fly by. Before either of them knew it, it was already night time. And for the second time that day, Sniffles jumped when he heard someone knocking on the door. He looked back at Milo, wanting to ask him to answer the door, only to find that the feline was currently trying to pull another piece of flesh away from the virus on the table. He stared at the cat, before shaking his head and going upstairs, nearly tripping on his own feet.

"Hello?" He slowly opened the door, finding a brown and white deer standing there, leaves and twigs tangled in his brown and black hair, as scratches decorated his body. The light blue jeans he wore were torn on the right knee and seemed to be cut off on the left. His fur was matted and tangled, as his blue eyes were bloodshot and filled with slight tears. "Oh, my! What happened to you?!"

"Haha! Funny you should say," he spoke, his voice hoarse and his teeth chipped and bloodied. "I was um... trying to find a way back to Oak City, but lost my way in the woods. Then, this wild dog chased me for at least four miles, and I found myself here!"

"Wow, that seems like a pretty horrible adventure," Sniffles chuckled, allowing the injured deer into his home. "My name is Sniffles! What's yours?"

"I'm Mikey! It's nice to meet you, Sniffles!" The two smiled, before hearing Milo scream in what sounded to be surprise.

"Excuse me," The anteater left the deer, running downstairs and into the lab. Milo was currently in a tug of war with the virus substance, both pulling on a towel that was slowly being devoured.

"Milo! What are you doing?!" Sniffles cried, not wanting to go anywhere near the substance. Milo looked at his friend, giving him a sheepish smile when his skin peeled away.

"Well, I accidentally let this thing get hold of the towel, and I want it back!" he explained, glaring at the virus. "It has a strong grip. I also think it's a living thing, and for someone to get infected, they have to consume it!"

"How'd you figure that out?" he asked, tilting his head.

"The meat I put in front of it was perfectly fine! It was when it finally latched onto it that the meat started to decay!"

"That's... both amazing and scary..."

"Who cares! Write this down, do something! We need that cure, dude! And who was at the door?"

"An injured deer. I think he needs a place to stay!"

"Tell him to go speak to Rabbit, or Flippy! Hell, tell him to go to Flaky or Cuddles! I don't care! Just get him out of here!"

"Alright! Just... keep this thing occupied while I talk to him."

"No. I'm gonna let this virus run loose. C'mon, Sniffles! I got this thing under control!" Finally, Milo fell backwards, the virus letting go of the towel. Sniffles quickly ran upstairs, shutting the metal door and looking at Mikey, who was sitting on the couch, paper towels covering his seating spot.

"I'm sorry, but I borrowed some of your paper towels," he spoke, his voice soft as he smiled at Sniffles. "My legs started to hurt, and I didn't want to get your couch dirty, so I put some towels down!"

"Well, thank you for thinking of that, Mikey," he replied, matching his smile. "But um... I'm currently dealing with something big at the moment, and I don't think it would be safe for you to stay here."

"Oh, I completely understand!" Mikey stood up, removing the towels and crumbling them into a ball. "Would there be anyone else around here who could help me? Preferably someone who likes late night music?"

Sniffles thought for a moment. Cuddles? No. He went to sleep early. Toothy? Nah. He was at a party tonight, anyways. Handy? He had work in the morning, so that was a no go. Destrey? Perfect! The kitty was a night owl, and loved blasting music!

"Yes! My friend, Destrey!" he spoke, helping the deer to the door. "He lives right down the street in a blue tree trunk. You can't miss it!"

"Okay! Thank you so much, Sniffles!" Mikey smiled back at the anteater, walking out the open door and into the night. The two waved goodbye, and Mikey was on his way. Sniffles shut his door and returned to the basement, finding that Milo had the virus in a glass container, smiling at it.

"What did you do?" Sniffles asked.

"I trapped it. That's what it gets for letting go of the towel and making me fall backwards," he chuckled, glaring at the virus.

"We need to find a cure for it, and fast," he sighed, going over to the table that didn't hold the disease. "You said it's only harmful by touch, correct?"

"Yep! How you gonna pull that off?" he asked.

"If I can make the tree friend's body and organs more endurable to the virus, I might be able to hold off the cure for a while, so that way I can find a cure to kill it permanently!"

"You think it'll work?"

"It's the only thing I got."

"Ya know, I have this feeling you're going to fail horribly..."

"Be quiet! Who else in this town can do what I can?"

"Well... there are people in Acorn and Oak City..."

"I meant _here!_"

**A/N:** **Wow. An update. Anyways, that was chapter 2. Sorry it was horrible. That's all I got.**

**BoonyTheWolf: The note story is most likely never going to be updated, due to my horrible nature of usually never updating stories. I'm sorry ;-; and no. This story will not require any OCs. I think I got enough, especially with a couple new OCs. **

**Raleigh: Don't even worry 'bout it! They got Milo, half bucket filled with virus goo, and meat. I'm sure they got this... maybe...**

**Anyways. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, even though it probably sucked. And say hello to Mikey the musical deer! Woo!**


End file.
